Life in Five Senses: How Exploring the Senses Got Me out of My Head and into the World, part memoir and part mind-body exploration, is the story of how Gretchen Rubin (The Four Tendencies; Better than Before) undertook a yearlong journey to explore how she uses her five senses. After a doctor's appointment made her rethink how much she took her eyes for granted, she decided not to underestimate any of her sensory abilities anymore, and to engage in projects to help her explore seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching. "I hoped to discover larger truths," Rubin explains. "I hoped that a greater understanding of my own senses would give me a deeper appreciation of the human experience." And through a series of delightful experiments and experiences--a dinner party in the dark, a silent retreat, visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art daily for a year--Rubin delves into how she uses her senses, and how they impact her awareness of the world around her.
Sure to make readers suddenly more aware of the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures in their lives as well, Life in Five Senses is a truly fascinating book. Readers who wants to know themselves or the people around them a little better will appreciate the insights gleaned from Rubin's experiments and research. Life in Five Senses, perfect for those trying to live in the moment and enjoy the little things, is wonderfully inspirational. --Jessica Howard, freelance book reviewer